


The Shape of Space

by Cap_Sweet_And_Salty_Sadness



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Alien Cullen, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Space, Dorian is the captain, He does get the booty arrr, Inspired by The Shape of Water (2017), Language Barrier, M/M, Non-Binary Cullen, Soul Bond
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-20
Updated: 2019-12-20
Packaged: 2021-02-26 01:15:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,364
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21875029
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cap_Sweet_And_Salty_Sadness/pseuds/Cap_Sweet_And_Salty_Sadness
Summary: "What happened?"Anders sighed, pushed back his long blond hair from his forehead. His glasses slid down his nose and he took them off to wipe them on his uniform. "It's complicated. You died. Not long but enough for your body to stop working, and exposed to space as you were, it's a miracle your brain didn't explode from the pressure, let alone you can still see.""But you rescued me? I saw something before..."Anders shook his head, visibly uncomfortable. "Not us. By the time Cassandra alerted us and we got to you, you were still floating in space, but when we retrieved your body, I realised you weren't dead. Your heart was still beating."Dorian struggled to straighten up, groaning at the pain throbbing through his entire body. He felt like he'd been smacked over by a small ship. "What? How is that possible?""The damage done on the hull, we suspect the same creature who did that also saved you.""What species?""That's the thing. The Inquisition doesn't have any species registered that look like this one. As far as we know, it's our first encounter with that alien."
Relationships: Dorian Pavus/Cullen Rutherford, Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Comments: 10
Kudos: 67





	The Shape of Space

**Author's Note:**

  * For [roguedreadwolf](https://archiveofourown.org/users/roguedreadwolf/gifts).



> This was written for the Secret Holidays Exchange on the [Cullrian Discord](https://discord.gg/zc2T4k). <3

The vibrations of the loud music were shaking the mug on Dorian's desk with every beat. It would've been funny if he wasn't working on their recent mission's reports, trying to decipher what Bull had meant by "everything rolling smoothly like punches down the hill". He'd found a book of idioms and had taken to use them, needless to say it was not going well. 

Dorian had allowed his crew to celebrate holidays festivities for morale, but he started to regret his decision. His own morale was slowly going downhill with every cheer from two members meeting under the mistletoe - a faux one, of course, because the botanic garden on the ship was under Lavellan's supervision and everyone else was forbidden from touching it.

He was contemplating calling it a night and refuging himself in his bed with some VR, but he knew someone had to make sure the ship remained sailing smoothly. They weren't supposed to encounter any trouble, but a fight was always a warp drive away. Dorian wanted no risk of that happening tonight, when most of the crew was too drunk to manipulate their weapons. 

He gulped down the strong spicy drink in his mug so none of it would spill before he gathered his things and made for the main bridge. For that he had to venture through the midst of the party, under the strobing lights and cheers of his crewmates.

"Boss, why don't you join us?" The Iron Bull called him from a couch, hugged on each side by his lovers who were well down in their cups. Dorian smiled and shook his head.

"Someone has to make sure we don't get attacked by, dare I say, rival bandits. You enjoy yourself for me."

"Oh, we plan to," Hawke giggled, shifting his leg to be on top of Bull. Fenris was watching the exchange with a stern look, but only because he cared for them and didn't want them to end up vomiting on the floor. That... had happened before. A few times. Fenris was leaning against one of the walls with Carver trying to lure him into dancing with him, his strong body surprisingly flexible. Another night, Dorian might've enjoyed the sight more, but he was on duty. 

He nodded at Solas and Lavellan as he passed by them, knowing Solas was sober enough to tamper things down if needed. He continued to the main bridge where things were fairly more quiet, well away from the center of the festivities. Dorian had given the night off to everyone, but Cassandra had volunteered to work on the bridge. 

"Anything worth reporting?" He asked her, stopping beside her. 

"Nothing, but the night's still young."

"Don't say that. You know how I feel about omens."

She grunted, assessing him with intent eyes. "Why aren't you with your crewmates, Dorian?"

He shrugged, leaned against her seat. The hologram screens in front of them were scrolling with neverending information, the radar showing nothing but their own ship. "I doubt getting drunk with their new captain would truly boost morale."

"I think that's exactly what some of us need, to see you loosen up. Every mission we've completed in the past year, we did them because of you. Our previous captain, he..." She shook her head with a disgusted grunt, still not over how her own mentor could lie to her that way. "He was nowhere near your skills at adapting and thinking ahead."

"Thank you, Cassandra. It means a lot coming from you. Still, I wouldn't want to ruin anyone's fun tonight. Perhaps I'll join you at the next poker night, gain myself some pocket money."

She laughed. "Of course, Captain."

Interference on the screen made Dorian jerk his head over, but it disappeared just as quickly. He frowned, sure he'd seen something, but the radar remained silent, no dots on the dark screen. Strange.

"Did you—" He started, only for an alarm to appear on the screen monitoring the ship's barrier and hull. 

"It's a breach, Captain," Cassandra announced, her fingers skimming over to zoom over the specific area. "The Lower bay, something went right through our barrier."

"What? How is this possible, there's nothing around us?" 

She continued furiously typing, and he watched as a more detailed scanning still showed nothing around them. He hummed, finding the whole thing very odd. 

"Was anything else breached?"

"Nothing so far. There's no one down there either, either our crew or possible enemies."

"Good. That's good. I'll go to take a look."

"Dorian, wouldn't it be better to ask one of the Hawkes instead?"

"And spoil their fun? Come on, it's probably a debris that collided, what else could it be?"

A very spiky debris that managed to go through the deflective barrier, but still.

"I'll go suit up, talk to you down there."

Cassandra looked like she wanted to argue but settled for a resolute nod. "Sure, Captain."

He didn't tell anyone of the problem, unsure if it was worth alerting. They'd never had anything of the sort happen, for a lone object to break through their ship. They were more used to deal with blasts coming from other ships.

He took the elevator down to the airlock to suit up. He buckled on the spacesuit in record time, only struggling with the helmet because he was used to someone else helping him. The Hawkes were normally doing repairs and maintenance on the hull, but Dorian knew how to do the job. As captain he felt entitled to know everyone's job so he could act as substitute in emergency. 

"Dorian, can you hear me?"

"Loud and clear. I'm about to head out."

"Make sure to secure yourself first. Do you have the repair tool?"

Dorian made sure everything was in order before he stepped out, rolling his eyes as he did so. He swore Cassandra acted like a better mother than his real one sometimes. 

"Yes, I have my keys and my lunchbox, mom."

"This is no laughing matter. I still can't figure out what occured. There's no interference either that could explain it."

"Alright. Heading out now." He hit the door button and the room decompressed before it unlocked and he could fly out. The feeling of no gravity was startling him every time he had to venture in it, it was like floating in water with a two-hundred pounds swimsuit. He slowly made his way around the ship, using the suit's thrusters carefully. 

"It's so bright out here, I should've brought my sunglasses," he grumbled, squinting at a particular luminous glare. Cassandra kept monitoring him until he could see the damage with his bare eyes.

"Can you see this?" He asked, shocked. The hole was distinct and quite large. "It looks like something came through at FTL speed."

"That's very odd. Approach with caution, will you?"

There was nothing around the ship except for lingering debris from the hull, little silver splinters reflecting the stars as he flew past them. His suit's scanner didn't detect any current or recent movement, which was weird. There should be something explaining the damage.

"Sure thing." The hit was nowhere major, but a few inches up and it would've damaged their oxygen generator. "Did you analyse the puncture?"

"I did, with your body cam. You can start repairing."

The repair tool was fairly easy to use, Dorian only had to choose the material and let the nanobots do their job as they closed the hole on one side, then he shifted to the other side. He found himself humming one of the ridiculous holiday songs under his breath, his back starting to itch. 

"Maybe I'll treat myself to a drink after this. I think you'll deserve one as well, Cassandra."

"I'll treat us to my own stash if— What is that?"

"What is what?" Dorian looked around him and turned around, alarmed. 

"In the hole, Dorian! Get away from there!"

Dorian had no time. Just as he let go of the tool, an unknown sourced energy exploded from the breach and blasted him into space. He heard a loud crack and gasped for air, only there was nothing to breath. His helmet visor had completely shattered. Pain erupted in him, over his face as his skin began to peel off, his body expanding in his suit from the sudden low pressure.

"Dorian, hold on. Fuck." He could hear she activated the emergency alarm, but consciousness was already slipping from him, his lungs ruptured. There was no gain in fighting it. Dorian was going to die.

He closed his eyes to try and at least prevent them from exploding, as silly as it was. Rescue was still too late, he only hoped they could repair his ship back to her glory, Dorian's last thoughts were.

Behind his lids. a beam of light shifted and intensified before him. 

He ought to be dead. But the light behind his lids wasn't ethereal, it was the blinding lights of the infirmary bay. He groaned and tried to block his eyes with a hand, hissed in pain when it yanked on his IV instead.

"Good, you're awake," Anders said from nearby. He did something and the light dimmed considerably. Dorian slowly blinked, his vision blurry and troubled. 

"What—" He started and coughed, his throat parched. Anders gently helped him drink some cool water, and he felt a bit better. "What happened?"

Anders sighed, pushed back his long blond hair from his forehead. His glasses slid down his nose and he took them off to wipe them on his uniform. "It's complicated. You died. Not long but enough for your body to stop working, and exposed to space as you were, it's a miracle your brain didn't explode from the pressure, let alone you can still see."

"But you rescued me? I saw something before..." 

Anders shook his head, visibly uncomfortable. "Not us. By the time Cassandra alerted us and we got to you, you were still floating in space, but when we retrieved your body, I realised you weren't dead. Your heart was still beating."

Dorian struggled to straighten up, groaning at the pain throbbing through his entire body. He felt like he'd been smacked over by a small ship. "What? How is that possible?"

"The damage done on the hull, we suspect the same creature who did that also saved you."

"What species?"

"That's the thing. The Inquisition doesn't have any species registered that look like this one. As far as we know, it's our first encounter with that alien." Anders brought up a hologram screen with live footage of a prison cell. In it was pacing a golden skinned species Dorian had never seen before, with physicality similar to a human's and yet different. There was a constant stream of colours fluctuating under their skin, their hair with a much lighter density than the ship's gravity, floating around them in golden curls.

"They're beautiful."

"And very dangerous, if they really destroyed a part of the hull and caused the explosion. We don't know their motive either, we're unable to start communication."

"The universal translator doesn't function with them, I assume."

"Unfortunately. We've been waiting for your instructions before further inquiring."

"Alright." Dorian flicked the screen away. He was exhausted, there was no denying it. "How long have I been sleeping?"

"About 36 hours. Your metabolism healed itself surprisingly fast, considering you took a trip barefaced into space."

"How did the alien save me?"

"Honestly? I'm not sure myself." And if there was anything frustrating for Anders, it was not understanding a medical procedure. "I can bring up your helmet cam's footage, I think that might be easier than try to explain."

Dorian settled in the pillows, massaging under his collarbone. "Sure, and then I'll need another nap to process all of this."

"More than you might think." Anders set up the video footage and Dorian watched himself get blasted into space. He was thrown in wide circles away from the ship, audio filled with him gasping for air in vain. There was something horribly unsettling about hearing oneself dying, but at least he saw what he first has missed. That bright light was coming towards him very fast, and as it came closer, the light transformed into the alien, only their legs were wrapped in a sort of luminous tail that must help them glide faster. He wondered whether it was technology or physiology. 

They stopped him from pivoting further away with hands on his shoulders, and their face came closer to his to examine him, he presumed. Their lips moved, the fast flow of their chopping words interlaced with clicks. Whatever they were saying, Dorian understood they meant to reassure him, which was odd if they were the one who wanted to destroy their ship. It didn't make much sense. None of this did so far, and it was worsening Dorian's headache.

They lifted their long fingers, but whatever they did was cut off by the angle of the cam. 

"What they're doing has saved me?" He asked Anders who took a seat on the bed near his legs. 

"That's the only plausible conclusion we came up with. How else could you have survived otherwise?"

"Then why attack the ship? Do you think it was their plan, to lure someone out so they could experiment on them or capture them?"

Anders shrugged, looking as lost as Dorian felt. "Perhaps, but then they got captured pretty easily if their plan was to bring you back. Cassandra has set up a team to survey our perimeter along our radar, just in case, but so far there's been no report of another encounter."

Dorian massaged his forehead with his knuckles, hoping the persistent pain would just go away. Anders patted his leg and got up. "I'll give you a dose of morphine and something else to help you sleep, alright? You're still recovering."

"Did you find anything abnormal with me?"

Anders gave him a look. "What isn't abnormal with your situation right now would be a better question. If you mean, is there any parasite or bug or a third party in your system? No. But if their technology was too advanced for our radar to detect them, there's a possibility it might be the same for you. That's why I'm keeping you here instead of your quarters so I can watch over you for the time being."

"Ugh, that's faring well. Thank you Anders."

"No problem, Cap. Sleep well."

It was a few days later that Dorian was allowed to leave the medical bay. He spent that time alternating between watching over and over the footage of his pseudo-death and the live camera of the alien's cell. The chef tried all sorts of food for them and although they always try it, it seemed to make them sick. Someone needed to establish communication with them, to interrogate them and learn more about their species. The ship didn't have any language specialist because there hadn't been any need for it in the past century.

Dorian studied the sentence they'd said to him and managed to repeat it almost to perfection, then set to find a similar language so he could learn the different clicks based on tongue placement. The universal translator greatly helped with language barrier except for this case, and despite Dorian knowing common and Tevene, neither sounded anything like the alien's language, but he still found it was quite easy to learn. 

They were sitting on a new discovery, and Dorian had more questions than answers so far. Why had the alien destroyed their ship, only to rescue him, and why hadn't they fly away afterwards? Dorian didn't need a crash course on their technology to understand it was beyond anything the Inquisition possessed.

They were still studying the alien's equipment and deducted they were either a messenger or a scout. Their suit was more an armour and was very light, equipped with the sort of gadgets that was only imaginable in futuristic sci-fi movies. They didn’t find any weapon but discovered that some commands could only be activated via fingerprints, so really, they didn’t know much.

As soon as Dorian went over everything he'd missed during his recovery, not sleeping for over 36 hours and yet barely feeling the exhaustion, he took the elevator to the prison. It wasn't big, made of two cells built to withstand over two tons and immune to all the elements possible. The worst the prisoners could do was kill themselves. It hadn't happened before in his ship, but there was a first for anything.

He told himself he'd try and understand how the alien sustained themselves. They had to start somewhere, and food was an universal thing. He had the chef synthesise a variety of fruits and veggies from all over the galaxy after his physical scan showed they had a denture similar to a herbivore. 

"Good day, Captain. Ready for interrogation so soon?" Krem greeted him.

"This won't be an interrogation. Not for now, anyway. Anything to report on the alien's behaviour?" 

"Lots of pacing, we recorded everything they’ve said but there hasn’t been much."

Dorian nodded at Krem and stopped in front of the window separating him from the alien. They turned towards him and seemed to recognise him. They approached the window to observe him, and Dorian raised his hand to salute him.

"Hi," he started with. The alien titled their head, hair following the movement. They were really pretty, and it was more difficult for Dorian to focus than he anticipated. It was those beautiful hues of golden circulating under their translucent skin that amazed him. 

Dorian put his hand over his chest. "Dorian," then he pointed at the alien with an inquisitive look. It took a second, but the alien seemed to understand. They imitated his gesture and said something short starting with a click. Dorian repeated it, confident with his practice, but apparently he wasn't saying it properly because the alien shook his head and repeated himself more slowly. Dorian indulged him, smiling when the alien seemed satisfied.

"Qqlen. Nice to meet you."

"Dorian," Qqlen said perfectly. They had time to listen to the others talk over the last days, but it still surprised Dorian when they lifted their hand to imitate him. "Hi."

"Krem, open the panel. If anything happens, you're authorised to use the protocol 36."

"Are you sure this is wise, Dorian?"

"Not at all, but when have I ever been?"

Krem sighed but pressed on his wrist device and the panel disappeared. Dorian lifted the food tray he'd brought with him and cautiously took a step forward. He didn't dare come any closer than that. Qqlen hadn't showed any sign of hostility, but discretion was the better part of valour. The window slid back into place behind him. 

Qqlen assessed him calmly, their eyes solemn. The colours over their skin moved faster for a moment before they returned to their normal pace. They also took a step sideways and allowed Dorian to put the tray on the small metal table slotted into the floor. Dorian took one of the plushy, vivid red berries and ate it slowly, showing Qqlen he wasn't trying to poison them. He took another one and presented it to them with a small smile, hoping his open expression would convince them. 

Qqlen said something interrogative, tilting their head as they stared down at the small fruit. After a heavy silence, they took it, their fingers brushing together. Their temperature was way above the average human's, over 40 degrees celsius. Even having that piece of information, Dorian was surprised at the warm touch but tried to hide it under another smile. Qqlen smelled and palped the berry before they deemed it worthy and popped it in their mouth, chewing contemplatively. 

They slowly made their way through the tray that way. Qqlen had a preference for plump fruits like raspberries and peaches, and veggies with a higher percentage in water like cucumber but wasn't a fan of the root ones. Maybe if Dorian had presented them with fried potatoes, they'd had a different opinion. He managed a chart of their preferences and sent them to the chef, also asking him to add more diverse fruits to their next order. 

They had ended up seated on the bed, with Dorian naming the food as they tried them, Qqlen repeating them with an almost perfect enunciation. When he left, Qqlen taught him a parting expression and beamed when Dorian got it almost it right away. Dorian left reassured, but confusion was still present. Qqlen didn't appear plotting or trying to keep their intentions a secret, but the language barrier was definitely frustrating. Dorian realised he wanted to get to know more the alien, and perhaps his intentions weren't entirely for the Inquisition's purpose. 

Dorian didn't even know the gender of the alien, and although they presented male genitalia and had a deep, masculine voice, he wouldn't be so bold as to assume. There was definitely an attraction there for their beautiful physique, but what lured him was also the lurking intelligence in their eyes. Dorian always found intelligence to be hot, he couldn’t help it.

The next day he returned with more fruits and the chess game displayed in his private quarters. He never got to play because he was too busy and no one else on board knew how to, but Dorian thought it might be a good exercise to learn more about the alien as the game didn't require words, only strategy. Qqlen greeted him with a sly smile and brightened up at the display of fruits. They ate the ones they recognised right away once he brought the tray to the table. Dorian felt guilty they were more or less starving them for a lack of knowing what else to feed them, but Dorian had asked his technicians for a program on image-based communication, so Qqlen could share their needs with Dorian and the crew. 

Once they went through the food, Dorian replaced the tray with the chess board. They watched him with interest as he placed the pawns at their respective place, explaining, "this is one of Thedas' oldest games, I've seen lots of variants throughout the galaxy, so I'm hoping your planet, wherever it is, has something similar. This is called chess." He pointed at the game and waited while Qqlen picked up the pawns to observe them from closer. They weren't anything like what Dorian used to play with as a child, instead molded in blue resin, but there was still the distinguishable physical traits on each piece. Once they deemed themselves satisfied with their observation, they watched as Dorian showed them the rules by moving each type of pawn around, then quickly played against himself to reach checkmate.

"Okay?" Dorian made the okay sign and Qqlen nodded, looking excited.

"( _ Okay _ ) _ , _ " they said.

They played a first game as a practice, but honestly Qqlen didn't need it. They beat Dorian right away. They looked proud of themselves enough that Dorian didn't really mind, even if his ego was bruised for a second. 

Dorian started to place the pawns on the board again for a second game and his sleeve must’ve brushed them because, as soon as he was done, they all clattered to the floor. "Oops. I forgot to activate the magnet option on the board so they don't do that."

Qqlen helped him gather the pawns, giving him an asserting look when they thought Dorian couldn’t see them. They played another game before Dorian was called at a meeting he couldn't miss. Dorian waved at them as he left, but Qqlen surprised him by coming closer and gently pressing their cheeks together. They whispered their parting against his neck, their presence warm and inviting. It was the first time they approached him and Dorian... well, he didn't know what to make of it. He showed nothing of his inner turmoil and smiled one last time before taking off.

He had to shake off that attraction, it could compromise what they were trying to achieve. Next time they went to the orbital station to resupply, he would visit the local bar and find some relief there, for it must be it. Why else was he feeling so strongly for Qqlen, someone he couldn't even have a conversation with?

Only they did communicate, in their own way. Words weren't always necessary. 

"Dorian, thank you for joining us on time," Cassandra said as he stepped in the war room. He rolled his eyes and took his seat at the circular table. 

"It appears I have events on my schedule, while it may not be the case for everyone here," he glared at her and she grunted while Solas was trying to hide his smile beside her. Josephine was already taking notes on her holopad, for whatever reason, while Bull was munching on some nuts he offered Dorian who took some. Perhaps something else to present to Qqlen next time?

"That's actually the reason of this meeting," Leliana piped in, bringing up a hologram of Qqlen. "You've been interacting with them a few times now, what have you concluded on the reason of their attack?"

Dorian sighed and linked his fingers together. "I've observed they're intelligent, picking on things very quickly, even with a strategic mind. They haven’t threatened me, nor have I felt aggressiveness coming from them. I think we should give them quarters of their own."

Immediately, a few of his advisors protested. "They tried to destroy the ship," Bull's voice boomed over the others'. 

"I believe it was an accident. How that happened remains a mystery for the moment, but that's the first thing I want to discuss with Qqlen next time."

"So what is your conclusion based on?" Leliana said, but Solas devanced him.

"He likes them."

Silence fell when Dorian didn't refute him. He cleared his throat, for once uncomfortable with having everyone's attention on him. "I wouldn't put my crew in danger if I believed their intentions were malevolent."

"Actually," Josephine talked for the first time. her fingers gliding fast over her holopad's interface. "This could be a feasible solution for the time being. Giving Qqlen their own quarters might put their mind as ease, and if they're really up for something, they'll think we're—"

"Stupid. They'll think we're stupid," Bull finished for her, crossing his arms over his massive chest. He was irritated, but knew when to call defeat. "It'll also be easier to know more about them in a less threatening environment."

"Exactly." Josephine smiled at Bull who winked back at her. How he thought it was possible with one eye was beyond Dorian. 

"It's settled, then. I do not approve of this plan, but it's far beyond anything we ever expected to deal with."

"Because being space pirates is so much easier than deal with emotions, isn't it?" Leliana said with a straight face, but Dorian recognised the twinkle of amusement in her eyes. Cassandra mumbled something under her breath and was the first to leave the table, and thus ended the meeting. Dorian remained where he was, contemplating if any of that was a good idea. Solas turned to Dorian before he left.

"I hope you know what you're doing."

Dorian chuckled, leaned back into his chair. "I think you and I are both aware I rarely do."

Qqlen was transferred early the next day. Dorian wasn't there but he monitored the process from afar, remaining in his own quarters. Qqlen showed they were uncomfortable being moved, not knowing what was happening, but didn’t give any ill look at Bull and Solas. Bull had insisted on being the one transferring them, and if it meant losing some of his doubt about the alien, Dorian allowed it and asked Solas to be there as well, to calm things down if anything happened. The elf had a soothing aura no one could resist when he set his mind to it. 

Dorian breathed better when Qqlen was settled into their new quarters, which were next to Dorian's. He sighed, asking himself whether or not he should pay them a visit right away or wait a bit. He picked up his mug full of caffeinated delight, or at least he meant to, but his fingers picked on empty air. He frowned when he realised his mug was on the other side of his desk, out of reach. He didn't remember putting it there, he'd literally been drinking from it a moment ago. 

His com turned to life. "Captain, I think it'd be best for you to be Qqlen's welcoming party," Solas said. Well, that made his decision much easier.

"I'm on my way," he replied, then made his way over, foregoing his usual jacket to be more casual. If he meant for Qqlen to trust him, he had to stop showing up with his full gear of plasma guns and grenades. 

He carefully knocked on the door panel before requesting access. The door wasn't locked, which meant either Qqlen hadn't figured out how it worked or they didn't mind people coming and going. The alien was busy browsing on the holopad they provided for them after they bared it from the ship's remote access. They could go on the internet but couldn't control anything inside. Dorian noticed the chess board on the table sitting in the middle of the minimalist room, pawns in position, and he couldn't help but smile.

Qqlen looked up and smiled at him, waving their hand. Dorian did the same and came closer to do their salutation, placing his hand on the nape of their warm neck to press their cheeks together. Such an unusual greeting, but Dorian didn't mind it. Not at all. Qqlen said something with a note of relief perhaps, or gratefulness? Whatever it was, they took his hand when Dorian leaned back to sit beside them. Their species seemed very touch-driven.

"Are you enjoying your new quarters?" He asked them, gesturing around them. 

"( _ Yes _ )," they replied. "( _ Thank you _ )."

Dorian showed them around. making sure they knew how to work the shower and toilet, then the clothes fit for them in the wardrobe and the television. Qqlen was fixated on the latter for a while, shifting through the channels.

"Television is nice," they slowly said, taking a seat on the large couch. Dorian laughed as they joined them, proud at how quickly they were learning Common.

"( _ Yes _ )," he replied, a smile still on his lips, and Qqlen turned to him with a soft look. They wrapped their arm around Dorian's shoulder, their warmth seeping through the thin fabric, and he leaned into them. They ended up watching an episode like this, and frankly Dorian wouldn't have been able to summarise it if asked. All he focused on was the weight of Qqlen's arm, their long fingers softly caressing the sensitive skin of the side of his neck down to his collarbone where his collar was loose. The way colours shifted under their skin was mesmerising, Dorian was almost sure they were influenced by their feelings. He noticed they had slowed down since his arrival. 

"Qqlen, I have a question," he said once the episode was over and it was now the weather forecast of the solar system they were currently in. Qqlen tilted their head, intelligent golden eyes following his hand movement as he brought up his wrist device’s hologram interface so he could play the footage he'd watched over a dozen times. Instead he observed Qqlen expression shift from curiosity to something akin to sadness to resilience, their mouth a thin line. Once the footage was done, Qqlen made a low soft in their throat that Dorian had learnt to be their equivalent of sighing. 

"Why did you—" Dorian rewinded the video back to a view of the destroyed ship, "do this?"

Qqlen replied something, shaking their head, but Dorian only understood  _ no _ . 

"No what?" He frowned as Qqlen made a line in front of them with their hand, repeating  _ no, no.  _ "I'm sorry, I don't understand."

Qqlen got to their feet, walked around, and took a pawn from the chess board. Looking at Dorian, they let it drop to the floor.

"Drop? Fall? You fell? Or pushed?"

Qqlen pushed the whole board to the floor and, after a second, said, "Oops."

"Mistake?" Qqlen sat beside him and pointed at the frozen image of the ship. 

He made the same hand gesture of something flying, repeating "Oops", and something in his facial expression made Dorian put the puzzle pieces together.

"It was an accident. You ran through my ship by accident." He fast forwarded the footage, now pointing at the moment Qqlen was in front of him, their hand extended outside of the frame. "How about this? You brought me back to life."

Qqlen took his dominant hand, palm turned upwards, and drew something on it with their index finger. The intricate sign, that Dorian had never seen, brightened for a moment before the light concentrated in the middle, under his skin. It wasn’t coming from Qqlen, but from him.

"What is that?" Dorian stared at the light, then up at Qqlen. “Am I doing that?”

Qqlen pressed his hand against where their heart was, then pointed at Dorian’s chest. “You did that to me?” He touched Qqlen’s forearm and sure enough, his light spread through Qqlen and brightened the colours there. What had Qqlen done to him?

Qqlen tapped on their wrist and a device materialised around it. "Wait, did you have that the whole time?"

Qqlen looked sheepish and gave him a small smile as they typed something on the screen, and with a sort of flicking motion, they made the screen much bigger. It was in vivid quality, Dorian felt like he was actually back in space. They hadn't found any camera on Qqlen's suit, and yet Dorian was sure he was currently having a view from Qqlen flying through space at top speed. They were talking through comm, Dorian couldn't hear the replies but he gathered it was banter from the light tone in Qqlen's deep voice. 

They shifted their eyes to verify something on their map, still going at top speed, and when they looked up again, there was one of Corypheus’ ships incoming towards them. They let out sharp words, probably informing whoever was on the other side of the comm the situation, and they changed direction as something glimmered around them, akin to a stealth barrier to turn them invisible and undetectable. 

Logograms Dorian had never seen before were scrolled rapidly from the top to bottom of their screen, and Qqlen referred to it from time to time as they glided faster, the lights around them becoming long white lines. They were going at FTL speed now. They said something interrogative, pressed options on the screen, and the camera blurred for a short second as they came in contact with something.

They returned to normal speed right away, turning to see what they’ve gone through, and Dorian had a clear view of his ship, hull breached. 

“So that’s what happened,” he drawled, sighing softly. Qqlen from the video tried to repair the damage, but then the door of the airlock unlocked and they flew far away enough to see Dorian make his way to the hole. While he started repairing, Qqlen argued with whoever he was speaking to, probably a superior, but just as they started towards Dorian, there was the explosion. 

Dorian was truly a bad sight, skin raw and peeling off in strands. Qqlen regarded his attire and finally reached into his helmet, touching his forehead with his index. Luminous colours transferred from them to Dorian who immediately started healing, skin growing healthy again and the pained expression smoothing out where the colours spread until they disappeared down his neck.

“That light, I have it now?” Dorian pointed at the screen, then at his own chest. Qqlen nodded, said a word Dorian hadn’t heard before, and he slowly repeated it. 

“What does that mean?”

Qqlen gestured at the both of them and linked their fingers together. “We’re… bonded?” Like a soulbond? From what he could understand, Qqlen had somehow spread some of themselves into Dorian to save him, and it caused them to be bonded. Was it why he’d been witnessing those odd stunts ever since waking up in the infirmary?

“I have so many questions,” he groaned out, and Qqlen gave him a crooked smile, catching up on his confusion.. “I can’t believe your technology is in your wrist, our scans are truly worthless with your level of technology.”

He tried to bring back that same feeling Qqlen had caused in him and grinned when the light appeared out of his own devotion this time. 

“That’s great,” he told Qqlen, who grinned back at him.

“Great,” they said. “Beautiful.” They leaned into Dorian’s space, wrapped him in their arms and kissed him, their lips so very warm.

“( _ Okay? _ )”, they asked softly, golden eyes searching his.

“( _ Yes _ ).” Dorian pulled him back to him, and while he didn’t want to come so strongly at Qqlen, the latter instead took it upon themselves to deepen the kiss, licking into his mouth, hands splayed on his lower back to bring him on their lap.

It became difficult to concentrate on anything other than Qqlen’s lips and tongue and hands on him and the feel of their beautiful soft hair between his fingers. Dorian wanted more, hungry to touch more of their skin, discover how fast the colours would fluctuate underneath it when they became too aroused to form words.

Many things were on today’s schedule however, he couldn’t pass his whole afternoon in Qqlen’s arms, as tempting as they were. 

“I have a meeting with my advisors,” he said, trying to convince himself to move from Qqlen’s lap while they were trailing hot kisses along his jaw.

“Meeting?” Qqlen repeated, nibbling a sensitive spot underneath his ear. 

“Yes. I’m the captain, I simply can’t miss—  _ Oh, do that again. _ ”

Dorian indeed was late for the meeting.

**Author's Note:**

> I did research on languages using clicks and the alien language is loosely inspired by the hadza language. Here's [an article ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hadza_language#Dead_animal_names) if you want to know more about it , but qq is an orthographied type of click.
> 
> Find me on [Tumblr](http://cap-sweet-and-salty-sadness.tumblr.com/)


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